So if you’re a bookworm like me, I’m going to ask you a question. Have you ever felt so passionate about a book? You know, when you get that feeling that you literally cannot put this book down. You don’t want to have to face reality and you just want to keep turning the pages. To find out all of the loopholes, and plot twist, and deep dirty secrets that have been hidden from you since you started. Okay, well thats at least how I feel whenever I read a Jodi Picoult novel.

I promise you, this woman is a literary genius. Sometimes, I can’t even comprehend how she creates these stories. I always wonder, what goes on her in head that she can put together this incredible book, and then she never fails to amaze me when she comes out with a new one.

I have been a bookworm for as long as I can remember, I would rather be reading than doing anything else in this world. I consider it me time, time to unwind and be at peace with myself and my mind mind and not have a single care in the world. I have been a fan of hers since I was sixteen years old, and I will be recommending her books to all of my peers until the day I die. Every time people ask me what books they should read next, I give them the list that I’m about to give you. PLEASE do yourself a favor and at least take this list into consideration because I can promise you that you will not be disappointed.

“Nineteen Minutes”

First off, I’m going to recommend my absolute favorite book in this entire world. Its captivating, heartbreaking, intense, and just so real. From the different perspectives of this book you learn about growing up as a victim of bullying, and you learn about the most popular girl in school who can’t seem to be happy with herself or her life, and lastly, the consequences of said bullying. Lastly, you find out what happens when a lonely teenage boy makes a drastic decision and puts his and his classmates lives at risk. This book is called “Nineteen Minutes”. I have read this book twice, and I suggest that you at least read it once.

"The Pact”

High school couple, Chris and Emily are the perfect couple, they grew up as childhood friends soon to become each other’s first loves. Their relationship was so strong and passionate their whole lives, so passionate that they decided to make a pact, a suicide pact. They wanted their love to last forever that they decided to kill themselves together. Things take a toll for the worst when Emily is the only one who goes through with their decision, leaving her boyfriend Chris behind with all of the answers that soon become unravelled.

"House Rules"

Jacob is a teenage boy with Asperger’s Syndrome. Although he lacks social skills, he is brilliant in many other ways, and he has always been fascinated with forensic science and famous crimes. He keeps a police scanner in his room that actually leads him to the scenes of the crimes and he is known for helping the police solve the crimes that were committed. When his small hometown is taken back with a murder of their own, it turns out that Jacob is the first suspect on their list. Throughout this novel, page after page is trying to figure out whether Jacob is innocent or guilty…

"Change of Heart"

This book was intense. I think I read this in one weekend because I was still trying to figure out how I was feeling about it. Its about a death row inmate named Shay Bourne and his last request is to donate his heart - post execution to the little girl who’s father he killed. She has had a heart defect for her entire life, and its been nearly impossible for her the doctors to find a match for her heart until now. That is where things got a little tricky for her mother. Her daughter was given a second chance at life, but is she willing to take the heart of the man who murdered her husband?

"Handle with Care"

Willow has osteogenesis imperfecta, also known as brittle bone syndrome. Every single step she takes she has to take with caution, if she inhales a breath the wrong way there is a possibility that she could break a bone. Her parents are trying to make ends meet just so they can cover her medical bills, and it isn’t until her mother comes up with an idea that takes drastic measures. Willow’s mother, Charlotte, believes that if she files a birth lawsuit against her OBGYN for not giving her the information that her child would be born severely disabled, they could win the case and be able to pay off their medical bills until the end of time. But what would you do if your OBGYN you were filing a lawsuit against was your best friend?

"Salem Falls"

In his other life, Jack St. Bride was a teacher, and even a soccer coach at an all girls’ prep school. That was until one of his students filed a sexual harrassment complaint against him and nearly ruined his life. After serving an eight month jail sentence, and with no hope of ever teaching again, he takes on a job as a dishwasher in a small diner, and slowly starts to form a romantic relationship with the owner. As he begins to pick up the pieces of his life things take a turn for the worst when a group of teenage girls with a secret of their own turn his world upside down, leaving Jack back where he started.

"Plain Truth"

This book is one of my absolute favorites. I would highly recommend this to anyone. Its about a young Amish teenager who has a pretty big secret of her own. Pregnant and alone, and giving birth in secret, and then flat out denying she was ever pregnant when the babies body was found dead in the barn. And for right now thats all I’m going to say. Just read this one.

"Perfect Match"

Ugh, this one. Beyond heartbreaking and disappointing. Well, the book wasn’t disappointing but the fact that something like this could have actually happened in the world makes me sick to my stomach. This story follows Nathaniel, a scared, and vulnerable little boy who’s childhood was taken away from him by a selfish man, a man who was supposed to be there for him and support him. Instead he used a vulnerable little boy against his own benefit in a very sickening way. When the truth is set free and Nathaniel’s mother learns what happened to her son, she takes matters into her own hands leaving us to find out what lengths a mother will go through to protect her child.

"Leaving Time"

This is actually one of Jodi’s latest books, it came out in 2014, and I absolutely adore it. One thing that I love the most about Jodi’s books is that she picks such random topics to write about, but she somehow makes it work. This book, is about a thirteen year old girl who is on the search of her missing mother. Now we don’t exactly know if her mother is missing or if she abandoned her daughter, that is what we are meant to figure out. What we do know about her mother is that she was an elephant specialist. See what I mean when I say Jodi picks random topics to talk about? Like who would have thought, “hey I’m going to write a book about a daughter who is searching for her mother, but lets make it interesting, lets say her profession was an elephant specialist?”. Ugh, this is why I love Jodi. She creates these stories but they are so captivating and they only make me want more. Okay, so getting back to the summary, Jenna is the thirteen year old daughter in search of her mother. For a thirteen year old she goes through some pretty extreme lengths to find her mother. On her journey she connects with the detective who took on her mother’s case when she disappeared ten years ago. She also connects with a psychic who she believes can help her find her mother. The three of them go on this incredible journey so that they can all find the answers they didn’t know they needed. I would definitely recommend this book 10x to a friend.

"My Sister’s Keeper"

This book was actually one of the few Jodi Picoult books to make it to the big screen, and I have to say the book was a million times better than the movie will ever be. ESPECIALLY (I’m sorry if you haven’t seen the movie) since they completely ruined the ending of the book, like it wasn’t even how the book was written at all. That being said, meet Anna, at the age of thirteen she has undergone countless surgeries, transfusions and shots so that her older sister, Kate, can have a healthier life. Kate has cancer, and Anna is literally her life saver. The sad truth behind this matter is that Anna was born so she could donate all of her body parts to her sister whenever she may need them. At the age of thirteen Anna decides that enough is enough and she wants to have the rights to her own body. The lengths that Anna goes to are so intense that she is suing her own parents for these exact rights, even if it means she won’t be able to save her sister from dying.

I remember reading this book, I was a senior in high school and we luckily had a four day weekend because the weather was so bad. I was literally snowed in all weekend, with that being said, my house also didn’t have power for those four days. So, what does a teenager do without electricity, cable, and wifi you may ask? SHE READS. For four days straight, I did nothing but read this incredible book, giving me another reason to fall in love with this wonderful author.

I really do hope that you all take these books into consideration if you haven’t already and give this wonderful human being a chance to change your life. I could already go on and on about how much she changed mine. So here’s to you Jodi! You rock.